Product Description

Having spent the past year at a music conservatory, Kate Weaver returns home with a difficult decision to make: sacrifice her family and Amish community to pursue her God-given gifts or be baptized and give up her dreams. But her choice is made even harder by handsome Nathaniel's attentions. What will she do? 320 pages, softcover from Summerside.

Publisher's Description

Kate Weaver was raised in an Amish home and has always been expected to choose baptism and strict observance of the Ordnung. But Kate is blessed with a beautiful singing voice, and when another path leads her to the academy for vocal training, she struggles to understand God's will for her life. She returns to Apple Lake, haunted by a violent encounter with a fellow student, and finds herself drawn to the peace and devotion of her Amish home. But can she give up her dreams? Or will her calling forever separate her from the people and the way of life she holds so dear? Nathaniel King has never wavered in his commitment to the community and the Old Order Amish Church into which he is baptized. He has been in love with Kate for as long as he can remember, and he is devastated when she leaves Apple Lake to attend the academy. When Kate returns, will she make his most profound hopes a reality--or will she break his heart all over again?

I can't say enough about Jennifer's writing style, I have thoroughly enjoyed every book of her's that I've read so far. She pulls you into the story immediately and as she goes on you are right in the thick of it wanting to read the whole book in one sitting. I can highly recommend this book to anyone that enjoys Amish or Christian Fiction stories. I now have to buy the next two books in this series, "Rebecca's Rose" and "Miriam's Quilt". Oh Jennifer, why do you do this to me? Really I want to say thank you for writing such good books!

Kate's Song is such a heartwarming story because Kate struggles between her singing and her Amish faith. Her main interest is God's will for her life, but just what is His will? Is it her singing career or at home in her Amish community? And the Ordnung will not allow her to have both. Kate's journey is a difficult one as she struggles to make a decision.

Jennifer Beckstrand is a new author for me, and I am very glad I had the opportunity to read and review Kate's Song. I love how each author of Amish fiction has their own twist on their stories, and I love the writing style and the new twist on Amish fiction from Ms. Beckstrand! I really enjoyed getting to know the characters in this story, though some of them were frustrating at times! Kate was a sweetheart and of course I wanted the best for her, whatever it was! I love how the author weaves the story together with the Amish faith, worldly lifestyle with Kate's music, the love of family, her struggles and difficulties, along with her faith in God, and the happiness she finds through following what God's wants for her life. Kate's Song is writing at it's best, and I look forward to reading more books by author Jennifer Beckstrand!

I received this book from the author, Jennifer Beckstrand to read and review. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 55.

I stayed up until the wee hours to finish Kate's Song. This story has more twists than I usually find in Amish novels.

Kate comes home from her Milwaukee music school with a black eye and swollen lip. She stood up to the drunken, abusive boyfriend of her best friend in Milwaukee. Now she's home for the first time after two years away. Her eldest brother Aaron is quick to condemn her for vanity and wickedness. He has no problem spreading vile rumors about her.

The community is wary of her and her "worldly ways." All except Nathaniel , who's loved her since he was a boy. He hopes she won't return to school in September. His mother makes no secret of her disapproval of Kate as a prospective wife for Nathaniel. She pushes Sarah Schwartz, who happens to be the sister of Aaron's wife Ada.

Kate is tugged in two directions, and she wishes she could discern God's leading in her life. Should she go back to school or stay in Apple Lake, be baptized, marry Nathaniel and have children? She enjoys the applause when she sings, but it gets lonely without her loved ones.

I'm used to reading about stern Amish papas, but Kate's dad is supportive if not fully understanding of her desire to use the voice God gave her.

Kate Weaver is a young Amish woman with a special gift of song. During her rumschpringe (which her older brother likes to remind her has gone on for six years), she has left home to attend a music academy and pursue her dreams of using that talent on stage. Although her musical endeavors have gone beyond her dreams, not all has been good in her personal life, and she comes home, needing physical and emotional healing. Once there, she finds mutual interest with her long-time friend Nathaniel King, and soon that interest goes past simple friendship. More than anything, Kate longs for a definite answer from God about the direction her life should take. After much soul searching she finally believes she has God's answer, but misunderstandings abound and become roadblocks in her attempts to follow God's plan. Will love and truth prevail as she tries to find her way to live out her song?

Jennifer Beckstrand brings a new voice to the Amish fiction genre. The conflicts her characters face seem a little "rougher and tougher" than in some of the other stories I've read. In both of her stories (Kate's Song and Rebecca's Rose), she has an interesting way of drawing you directly in to the characters' dilemmas without revealing the whole problem at once. The complexity of the situation grows throughout the story, and then another "kink" appears to add a new level of intrigue -- even if you feel confident of how things might ultimately work out. She certainly kept me hooked to the very end of both books. And I'm definitely looking forward to next year's release of Miriam's Quilt, the next installment in the Forever After in Apple Lake series.